Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR - Get Free Report) have been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eighteen ratings firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $133.53.

A number of research firms have recently commented on EMR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Emerson Electric from $113.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Emerson Electric from $121.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on Emerson Electric from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird lowered their target price on Emerson Electric from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Emerson Electric from $105.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Surendralal Lanca Karsanbhai sold 16,698 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $113.33, for a total value of $1,892,384.34. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 164,957 shares of the company's stock, valued at $18,694,576.81. This represents a 9.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Orion Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Emerson Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new position in shares of Emerson Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Vega Investment Solutions bought a new position in shares of Emerson Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Saudi Central Bank bought a new position in shares of Emerson Electric in the first quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Emerson Electric in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Institutional investors own 74.30% of the company's stock.

Emerson Electric Price Performance

NYSE EMR traded down $0.65 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $119.27. The company had a trading volume of 4,057,167 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,931,099. The company has a market capitalization of $67.09 billion, a PE ratio of 28.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.54, a quick ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $108.64 and a 200-day moving average price of $118.68. Emerson Electric has a twelve month low of $90.06 and a twelve month high of $134.85.

Emerson Electric (NYSE:EMR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The industrial products company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.07. Emerson Electric had a return on equity of 12.08% and a net margin of 13.74%. The company had revenue of $4.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.42 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.36 EPS. Emerson Electric's revenue was up 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that Emerson Electric will post 5.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Emerson Electric Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be issued a $0.5275 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $2.11 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.77%. Emerson Electric's payout ratio is currently 50.48%.

Emerson Electric Company Profile

Emerson Electric Co, a technology and software company, provides various solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and consumer markets in the Americas, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It operates in six segments: Final Control, Control Systems & Software, Measurement & Analytical, AspenTech, Discrete Automation, and Safety & Productivity.